People’s Report on Bangladesh Environment 2001 is a pioneering attempt at capturing environmental perception of the citizens of the country. The Report focuses on people’s livelihood and liberty; their land, food security and other basic rights; their aspiration for quality governance and equity; their struggle for survival with dignity and creativity. It ably puts ‘people first’ and brings them at the centre stage of decision-making process on environmental management. The information presented in this Report originates from scores of people’s dialogues and expert investigations.The first volume of the Report contains issues related to land, water, forestry, industry, urbanization etc. The second volume contains a comprehensive database on environment. The Report is an outcome of a shared effort of many environmental experts, citizens and research officers of Unnayan Shamannay.

Atiur Rahman, a senior Research Fellow at the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) and Chairman, Unnayan Shamannay, is a reputed economist. He has led a number of pioneering studies to capture the perceptions of the ordinary citizens of Bangladesh on important development issues including national budget, water, agriculture, micro-credit and environment. Author of many books and articles, Dr. Rahman is deeply involved in environmental activism. He is currently directing the component Environmental Documentation and Dissemination from People’s Perspective (EDP) under SEMP sponsored by MOEF and supported by UNDP. He is the editor of the Paribeshpatra and Ecofile published by Unnayan Shamannay. He is also the Project Director of EDP.

M. Ashraf Ali, Associate Professor of Civil Engineering Department at the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), is a specialist in arsenic, solid waste management, water quality and air pollution. Besides teaching engineering, he is involved in environmental research. Some of his significant works include: Development of Low-cost Technologies for Removal of Arsenic from Groundwater, Water Quality Problems in the Coastal Areas of Bangladesh, Waste Management and Environmental Pollution in Bangladesh, Lead Pollution of Dhanmondi Lake in Dhaka, Interactions of Copper, Organic Acids and Sulphate in Goethite Suspensions, Competitive Sorption of Simple Organic Acids and Sulphate on Goethite, and Assessment of In Situ Solvent Extraction Process for Remediation of Coal Tar Sites: Process Modeling. He has been contributing significantly to the ongoing research activities of Unnayan Shamannay, particularly in EDP.

Farooque Chowdhury, Director Unnayan Shamannay started his career as a journalist. He has actively worked and written on environmental issues. He has conducted a number of participatory researches on development issues. He is the executive editor of the Paribeshpatra and Ecofile. He is also the Project Coordinator of EDP.